Focke-Wulf Ta 211

The Focke-Wulf Ta 211 was the original designation given to the Ta 154 twin-engined fighter, at a time when it was being developed as a high-speed bomber.

Work on the design began in the summer of 1942, when the German Air Ministry called for a light high-speed bomber using the Jumo 211 inline engine, which was now available in large numbers as production of the Heinkel He 111 bomber began to drop.

Kurt Tank's design team at Focke-Wulf came up with an aircraft built from wood and steel, with as little use of the scare lighter metals as possible. Two designs were submitted on 22 September - Design 1 for an unarmed high-speed bomber and Design 2 for a two-man night fighter. At first Design 1 had the higher priority, in keeping with Hitler's preference for offensive weapons. It was redesigned in October 1942 to carry rear firing defensive guns, but in the same month the emphasis moved to Design 2. October also saw Focke-Wulf receive permission to build the first prototypes.

The change of designation came in November. On 13 November the technical branch of the Air Ministry gave its official approval to the project, as the Ta 154. The change was made to avoid confusion between the aircraft's ID of 8-211 and the engine's ID of 9-211. Kurt Tank had been allocated three numbers to use at his own discretion - 152, 153 and 154. The first two were used for single engined fighters, while the new wooden aircraft became the Ta 154.